Method of preparing fabric sections.



llllllllHlL R. w. soon, METHOD OF PREPARING FABRIC SECTIONS.

APPLICATION HLED AUG.I6. I915.

Patented Aug. 28, 1917.

nn'rrnn sTATns rATnnT @FFlftdlfli ROBERT w. ScoTT, or BOSTON, MASSAcHUsETTS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, To scoTT & WILLIAMS, INCORPORATED, A CORPORATION or MASSACHUSETTS.

METHOD OF PREPARING FABRIC SECTIONS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented An 28, 191W.

Application filed. August 16, 1915. Serial No. 45,635.

To all whom it may concern .Be it known that 1, RO ERT W. SCOTT, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Methods of Preparing Fabric Sections, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the art of knitting on previously knit fabric sections.

One object of my inventionis to prephre such a fabric section for further knitting upon it in a manner to decrease the time required and, the skill required for preparation. Other objects are to provide a mode of supplying to a series of receiving instruments such as knitting needles or a transfer device, loops of a course of a previously formed fabric section, and then freeing theinstruments and the loops of waste fabric in a manner to improve and shorten the operation of knitting fabrics including such sections. As in the prior art, my said method may be practised in connection with a circular or straight series of needles, or a transfer implement such as a ring'having quills or points adapted to intermesh with the needles of a knitting machine to which the fabric is to be applied, my invention comprising the step of arranging the fabric to be transferred, in a condition to be knit upon, on the quills or pins of such an implement for a subsequent transfer, or directly on the needles of a knitting machine.

- In the accompanyingdrawings,

Figure l is a diagram showing a segment of a transfer implement and a fragment of fabric;

Fig. 2 illustrates a. step in the ope ration;

Fig. 3'is an illustration of the old art String-work, from which the section to be transferred is taken; and

Fig. 4 is adiagram section across the r transfer implement illustrating the same time in the operation as Fig. 2.

The usual practice of making a section of fabric, such as a top or ribtop for a stock ing, as illustrated in Fig. 3, includes forming a string-work or continuous section of tops each of which may have a welt 'w and a loose-course C, the string-work being severed on the lines s -s to divide it into individual tops. 1 Each of these tops is manthe machine making the string-work.

best practice from the point of view of u ally placed on the needles or the transfer ring or implement, the operator takingthe waste fabric W between the line of severance .9 and the loose-courseC in one hand and the part T in the other hand, in order to force or run on the loose-course, one or more loops at a time, upon the receiving in struments, as the quills Q of the transfer ring The loose-course C may represent one turn of a helix, for instance as illustrated in Fig. l occupying the circularly knit helical course numbered 11. The comparatively open loops of this course are brought into line as illustrated, the end loops of the course abutting at one point. The part T of the section or top now on one side of the row of receiving instruments illustrated by quills Q is to form a part of the stocking or other garment, but the part TV outside of the quills of the transfer ring, having served its function, must now be removed before the remainder of the operation can be carried out.

In practice, the removal of the waste section takes a large part of the whole time necessary to transfer a section of fabric, owing to the time required to free the edge of the section for raveling. It is impossible when severing such a string-work on the lines s.s to cut cleanly through one only of the helical courses, and the edge of the Waste section W as illustrated in Fig. 1 will be found to contain several fragments, as at f, of a course or courses. Each of these fragments must be removed by hand, at the expense of skill and eyesight, before the free runningend of a complete course as illustrated at 15, Fig. 1, is unlocked, in order to permit free raveling of the remainder of section TV to the impaled course C. Avoidance of this difficulty has heretofore been attempted by forming the line of severance s-s as a course adapted to be broken, or a course adapted to be drawn out; but in the former case irregularities in the structure are produced at the time of breakage,

and in the latter case a hard and smooth yarn, which is expensive, must usually be illserted by an expensivcspecial provision in The economy, therefore, has been to cut the string-work as lllustratod in Flg. 3, despite the loss of time occasioned during topping, as above explained.

; Ihave now devised a methodof placing the time and skill required. As illustrated in Fig; '1, the Waste fabric IV may have an edge, as before, containing fragments of a course or courses, and therefore not be in condltlon to be raveled untll the fragments have been removed. To provlde a free i'aveling end at a point inthe waste fabric,

loose-course C having been impaled, I sever the of the'courses' of the waste fabric at each sinker-Wale between the needle-wales impaled"; For instance, if the loose-course O is at the coii rse numbered 11, I may eut the sinker wales as illustrated at a: between each pair of quills, but I prefer to cut the sinker- ,walcs at the next coursebut one to the course impaled on the quills; that is, to cut the cbursenumbered 13 at the points a? as illustratedfrelatirely to the impaled course 11.

f? The difficulty above mentioned of cutting systematically the loops of a single course is iavoided according to my invention by performing this operation after the impaled j course positioned upon the receiving instruments, the neighboring fabric being pos'itionedby the instruments to enable the intended course to be found by its relation to the "fixed"instruments, as Q, for certainly cutting the mtendedcourse and no'other.

simultaneously. p fj'Ihe efl'ectofthe above step, whether taken in'course 1201' course '13, is toleaive' that part :I prefer to' cut all of'thesihlrer wale loops 4 30 the waste-fabric IV outward beyond the "out course free to be pulled away from the ends as at e'of each sinker-wale loop of that "course which was out free; to be pulled through the needle loop of the course still ",att'ached to the main part T of the fabric."

""The fabrio is now pulledoutwardlyas M fill'ust ated in Fig. 2, The effect of thisis to' remove the waste fabric with theffrag- 5onients 5,303 ofthe loops {of course lystill ,bngagedin the needle-wales in which they were formed, which Iattributeto th'e friction on thecut-ends tending toholdthezn "in the place in which they were formed 'be- SSj'in glessthan the frictionfat the engagement iofthe needle loops of the course 13 with "those ofcourse 14;.

fl he waste section W having been removed, the end a of the course 12 is' read ily G0"found. and pulled by the operator, toravel eourse 12 once around, thereby freeing the loops of, the loose-course C of any parent the'waste fabric IV, and making them ready for placing on the needles of the inachifie,

or r'eady fofknitting newfabric if 'the top mama ceu'rse ra ifitreespastime to pass the end of yarn which was course 12 toward 11116 :1111181101 of the fabric, to hold the loop 0 from raveling, as will be understood bythose skilled in the art. I may also accomplish'this same purpose by cutting in the course -next to the transfer course C at all the places 00, but not cutting at 20", in which ,case the attached f whnp'ulled away e111tenets end y y be passed" inside uei =c1e- 0rqui1is WVhe'rFI n-efer to' cutting the sinker-Wale i'ui'isof fya rii a' particular tours-em; will be understoodthat I refer to severing the yarn iiF manner, andthatI may employ any convenient implement for this urp se, SilCli ""laufe' orseries of knives or shears,

a breaking-i M f I may; r instance-, employ aseries implements movable; together or indepeademiy upoa smiths-spear to atran'sfer iin siichas tl; riri f Rg to" penetrate the "siiilzer wales-an nieasuij'eddistaifffbih the lin deterrnined by the quills*Q,,- but my invention 'is" inde- "pe iideiitj of anyimplement or maehine "th lithe aid" of whiclr'it ina y be'practiseda "Iii 'ome'c'a 'bf'in y m'ethod relating to separating the fabric" so as tof-l'eavef a' free 'raveling edge withou't performing tlifeihziih'in'g stepe [for instance to separate string wierkinte -preelingrb'y severing the sinker-Wale loops' 'as "desribdand-then pulling-on thefabric to ela se all of the yarn fragments from one end offthe' separ'ated stations. For Sachemhall e mast toqtfills or steal-eased the.

supporting for ,gseverin'g as described may be' -the jElIlStIIlIIlQIltS upon which 'ltISfO1liiClor ='anyoth r effective iz trh in ar separating knit fabric into pm-tear which one has a free ravel'ing edge comprlsmg severmg a course ofloofis Oft-he "t'Udinal str'ain. I I

2,,The art of prepar ng a previously but {throughout one, course" positioned "by 'its relation to the receiv ng"instruments?' "fabric sect ibna for knittinq in continiiation thereof comprising running a course of knit loops in -certa1n wales of said section ona 'ses'I ay 'practicethos'e step A v 1 00 ree -raw p "iloyn'ie at, it ishas essential tlri'atfthe fabric 'i'eina inde'r of the top, and to leave the'cut j fabric at sinlie'r walesfoftheF'knit strucgure; and their subjecting to longiseries of receiving instruments, and then severing the yarn of another course in a plurality of other Wales of the fabric.

4. The art of preparing a fabric section for knitting in continuation thereof comprising running a course of said section on a series of receiving instruments, and then severing the yarn in another course thereof, by a series of cuts in a direction longitudinal of the fabric, and then removing together the part of said section beyond the severed cours and the fragments of the severed course.

5. The art of preparing a fabric section for knitting in continuation thereof comprising running the needle loops of a course of said section on a series of receiving instruments, and then severing the sinker-Wale loops of the yarn of another course thereof, and removing the part of said section. beyond the severed course.

6. The art of: preparing a fabric section for knitting in continuation thereof comprising running the needle-loops of a course between the ends of said section on a series of receiving instruments, severing the sinker- Wale loops of a course between said instruments and one end of the section, and then removing together a part of the fabric and the fragments of the severed course.

7. The art of preparing a fabric section for knitting in. continuation thereof comprising running the needle-loops of a course between the ends of said section on a series of receiving instruments, severing the sinker-Wale loops of a course between said instruments and one end of the section, then removing together a part of the fabric and the fragments of the severed course, and thereafter raveling a course intervening between said instruments and the severed course.

8. The art of separating knit fabrics into parts of which one has a free raveling edge comprising severing a course of loops simultaneously in each sinker-Wale, and then pulling the fabric apart at the line of separat on so formed.

Signed by me at Boston, li/Iassaehusetts, this twelfth day of August, 1915.

ROBERT W. SCOTT.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the"Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. 0. 

